Reliably delivering applications and data to mobile workers over networks is an issue for many organizations and companies with field operations ranging from mobile repair and maintenance services to field-based sales. Implementing fully connected mobility (real-time access) is considered very important in order to ensure worker productivity (first-visit service-call completion), fast and reliable service resolution, cost control and revenue opportunities. Giving field personnel more timely access to technical and/or customer-related data managed by a backend system, e.g. a CRM system or a technical knowledge base allows them to increase productivity. This requires reliable and stable network connections.
For example, a company may have sold complex machines (e.g. microscope systems, complex biomedical devices, machines used in an automated production line, etc) to a plurality of customers and may employ assembly, operational and maintenance personnel that are highly technically qualified and trained for repairing and maintaining said complex machines at the customer's site. The machines may automatically send status information and error codes to a backend system maintained by the company. The backend system may constantly monitor and evaluate the status information and/or error codes for computing scores being indicative of what kind of actions to perform by the assembly, operational and maintenance personnel in order to install, test or repair a complex machine.
According to another example, the score values provided by the backend system may be technical parameters for configuring the operation of the machine. For example, the backend system may monitor the number, state and/or availability of consumables and production resources and automatically compute scores for said consumables and production resources which may increase or diminish the relative amount of said resources or consumables used by the machine for producing some goods or performing some analytical tests as to reduce costs or optimize technical parameters of the produced goods, e.g. mechanical durability, weight, elasticity or others.
Service information such as parts availability or repair tips may need to be checked at the customer's site for faster problem resolution. Updating service tickets in the field may enable call center-based service representatives to give real-time status reports. Poor cellular network and technology performance in the field may result in longer downtimes, reduced productivity and even erroneous decisions or sales offers created by the field personnel.
However many technical problems exist in respect to providing field-based employees with reliable access to information maintained in the backend systems: at a customer's site there may be no or only an instable connection to the mobile network; moreover, the mobile devices of field personnel tend to have comparatively small displays (smartphones, tabloids, net books, etc) and therefore the handling of client applications which request score information from the backend system and which display the score information on the display of the mobile device may be difficult.
For example, touch screens of smartphones are often not suited for quickly entering large amounts of data. In addition, the data provided by the backend system is often confidential, but protecting it by additional authentication procedures and requirements may reduce the productivity of the field-based employees. Moreover, there is a risk that the data having been already received by a field-based employee from the backend-system has become outdated, but a frequent refresh rate might consume battery power and thus might reduce the battery life time.